ValiRx Plc (LON:VAL) is extending its early stage trial of a prostate cancer drug after discovering the treatment appears to be working at lower doses than predicted.
“[We are] entering a very exciting phase, which should result in the crystallisation of substantial value,” said chief executive, Dr Satu Vainikka.
The early part of ValiRx’s phase I/II study was designed assess the safety and tolerability of VAL201 rather than efficacy.
However, computerised tomography (CT) imaging revealed ‘disease stabilisation’ and a reduction in prostate specific antigen (PSA) progression in the majority of patients.
In very crude layman’s terms PSAs can be used as a means of tracking the cancer.
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Building on these positive results, ValiRx is adding clinical sites in the dose-escalating phase of the trial process.
This is the ‘therapeutically relevant’ part of the research and development process when scientists arrive at the maximum tolerated dose of the new drug.
Vainikka said: "VAL201 has demonstrated disease stabilisation, with a lower dose than was predicted by our pre-clinical evaluations.
“We anticipate that by increasing the dosage we will show a high level of efficacy without compromising the safety and tolerability shown to date to meet the needs of those patients currently under-served by current therapies.”
The drug has been developed in such a way as to minimise the side-effects.
The shares were up 8% at 5.55p in morning trade.